Rich and his family are passionate mountain climbers. They’ve summitted mountains and hiked canyons throughout the United States and Nepal. He and his wife have trekked peaks in the Himalayas ranging from 14,000 to 20,000 feet, sometimes accompanied by two of their sons for the adventure. These boys were climbing in Nepal before they were 15 years old!

Safety is always an issue while climbing mountains, but in remembering the last trip his family took to Nepal, Rich remarked that safety was on his mind like never before. As he contemplated the risks his family took to gain altitude and resulting actions required to keep them safe, Rich realized how applicable his climbing rules are to entrepreneurship.

This chapter extracts the fundamental principles of mountain climbing and applies them to steps of creating a business. First, Rich will discuss a critical component of success: imagination! Second, he’ll explain the value of setting goals and rewarding yourself along the way. The third principle is to keep climbing! You will have failures along the way; the trick is to keep at it. The fourth concept in this chapter is entitled Seven Years of Plenty, Seven Years of Famine, highlighting the necessity of preparation. Fifth, the section for which this chapter is named: Climb High, Sleep Low. This principle is integral to Rich’s entrepreneurial philosophy and will provide a foundation upon which you can build success. Finally, Rich lays out his recipe for balancing all the demands of building a business in the section, Cross the Line.

This is one of my favorite chapters in the book. As I approached the full time commitment of stepping out of the corporate world and building my own business, these principles kept me sane and on track. They can do the same for you.

Hope you enjoy the concepts in this chapter and realize how they can be applied to your small business!